The mainstream establishment press reinforce the rationale for conflict by invoking carefully crafted euphemisms minted by public relations teams working in synch with the Pentagon. Keep that in mind when sound-bytes like "terrorist safe house" or "insurgent stronghold" appear in news reports on Fallujah and Ramadi. Those buzzwords are the precursors of aggression, in this case the so-called "assault" on Fallujah.

The American public is more apt to accept the "necessity" of using overwhelming force when it is concealed behind catchy buzzwords or war mongering jargon. This is how a murderous attack on a civilian population is sold as a "necessity".

You bet there are refugees trying to get out of Fallujah and Ramadi. The US has been bombing the area for weeks, has cut off food, water, and supplies to the civilian population, blocked access to the city's only hospital, etc etc. That sends a message loud and clear: the US forces will kill as many innocent civilians (calling them "insurgents" and "terrorists" of course) as it takes to subjugate the entire country. Are refugees being given safe passage by US troops? Where are all the refugees? What protections are they given--food, water, medical aid, shelter from the weather? How about shelter from the fighting? Where do they go for that? Into the desert to die?